Troy Carter, the head of creator services at Spotify and Lady Gaga’s former manager, is partnering with J. Erving to launch a music and technology company called Q&A. Carter and Erving previously worked together at Carter’s Atom Factory. They are also being joined by co-founder, president, and chief strategy officer Suzy Ryoo (formerly of Atom Factory and OMD) and COO Tim Luckow (Stem and GHouse).
According to Variety, Q&A is aiming to “empower the next generation of artists through technology, tools, and services.” And Q&A is going to be merging with Human Re Sources — which is a digital distribution company that J. Erving launched last year. This combined companies will offer an “integrated solution for artists via distribution, management, label services, and data analytics with a highly collaborative artist-driven approach.”
Carter is going to continue being an entertainment advisor to the Prince estate and he also works as a consultant to Spotify. At Spotify, Carter worked with several teams to set up artist development programs, including emerging artist development.
“My time spent at Spotify allowed me the opportunity to see gaps that still exists between the music business and technology,” said Carter via Variety. “Modern artists have to be more entrepreneurial than ever before. They’re looking for a lot more than music distribution, they want experienced teams that can help build long-lasting careers. We designed the company to allow artists of any size to have a shot at success. Whether you choose to stay independent or continue on to major label, our goal is to help creators through the process with a high level of service and intuitive software.”
The combined companies have also made its first release through Philadelphia singer/songwriter Pink Sweat$. Some of the other successful artists that worked with Human Re Sources include Peter Manos, Charlotte Lawrence, Brent Faiyaz, and the YBN collective.
“Troy is one of the smartest and forward-thinking people I know. This industry is ever-changing and creators are more proactive today than I’ve ever seen,” added Erving. “Troy and I have always taken an artist-forward approach to the music business and we believe that artists and their needs should always be put first.”
